Sunday, 30 December 2012

Mauka, I salute You

During a brief let-up in the endless deluge that has been December, I took stock of some of the plants in the back yard today. My attention was drawn to the maukas, sheltering in reserve, lest their brethren in the ground succumb to any or all of the following down at Oca Acres: rodents, rot, frost, flood.

The leaves have survived some mild frosts here, along with hail, howling wind and lashing rain. A hard freeze will certainly see them off, but the foliage does seem to be remarkably tough. For aficionados of botanical nomenclature, they are described as coriaceous - leathery - a few seasons out in the wind, rain and sun here did the same to my previously flawless complexion. Unlike my face, I notice that the plants are even showing signs of tender new growth. It's quite mild at the moment, but I'm impressed with their regenerative inclinations, given that days are short and light levels pitiful.

Mauka seems to hold plenty of potential as far as I'm concerned and I'm glad that my patented seed production system has allowed me to send viable seeds to far flung parts of the globe, where others are now experiencing the wauka factor. I hope that 2013 will see the March of the Maukas continuing apace.

About Me

I'm a botanist and horticulturist with a longstanding interest in edible and useful plants. I founded an alternative seed company called Future Foods and I also worked in the Heritage Seed Library at Ryton Gardens, HDRA, growing heirloom vegetables for distribution to the members. I'm the only person I know who has tried to grow Japanese knotweed and failed.
Other interests include walking, cycling, music and natural history.